MADRID, 23 Jun. (EUROPA PRESS) –
The Spanish men’s rugby seven team will not be in the Paris 2024 Games after losing this Sunday to Great Britain (17-12) in the semifinals of the Pre-Olympic, which was held in Monaco and which granted a single ticket for the event. this summer, which was finally for South Africa.
After a perfect start to the competition with plenty of victories in the first two days of matches, Spain was left with no options to fight for the Olympic ticket when it lost against the British team. In the duel for third place against Canada, the ‘Lions’ achieved a victory (14-31) and a bronze that leaves them with a cumulative five wins and only one loss in the Monegasque tournament.
The captain of the national team, Pol Pla, assured that the team “has been emptied.” “It is clear that we have made mistakes because if not the game will not be lost, but the attitude has been there and we have competed which I think was the most important thing, that if things went badly for us we would not lose it soon. I think they have had to work hard. and we left frustrated because it was not the result we wanted,” he said.
“Thank you to the thousands who support us, who follow us from a distance, who get up to watch games at ungodly hours. To the family, who are the biggest unconditional fan. To the people who are no longer with us, but who have been our best fans. And that in the end, we play for ourselves, but also so that there are people who feel proud of us and that it is a pleasure to go out on the field and know that there are people who are supporting us, that you leave the game and have a message that comforts, encourages or motivates you. All this is for them too and we play for them,” he continued.
The Spanish coach, Paco Hernández, stated that the match was “very close.” “We have played face to face against a great team that has had a very good season. We have had a couple of crucial moments in the game, especially in the first half, perhaps a little haste, that quick penalty kick… They have simply been a little better, it was a very close game and in the end they took it,” he noted.
“It’s a shame not to have been able to give you a good celebration in Monaco, but I think we are creating a lot of fans for rugby seven, it was seen in Madrid, and that they don’t miss anything from next year’s World Series because we are going to give a lot of to talk about. Let’s go for more next season,” he concluded.
Finally, South Africa won the only Olympic ticket awarded by the event by beating the British in the final (14-5).
2024-06-23 17:14:43
#Lions #goodbye #Olympic #dream #falling #Great #Britain #Rugby #PreOlympic
